Method of manufacturing a magnetic head device

A method of manufacturing a magnetic head device, comprising:

• forming, on a substrate, a thin film magnetic head that includes an inductive head and a magnetoresistance (MR) effect head having a MR effect element disposed between upper and lower half-gap layers, the inductive head being formed by:
• forming a recording gap layer of a non-alumina base nonmagnetic material on a lower magnetic pole layer;
• forming an upper magnetic pole layer on the recording gap layer;
• trimming the lower magnetic pole layer and patterning the recording magnetic gap layer using a single piece of equipment, the lower magnetic pole and recording magnetic gap layers being formed of materials having approximately the same milling rate such that the lower magnetic pole layer has a width that is substantially the same as that of the upper magnetic pole layer;
• the method further comprising:
• removing the recording gap layer and the upper and lower half-gap layers over a region of the substrate;
• cutting the substrate to define a head block, the thin film magnetic head element being disposed on a side surface of the head block;
• etching prescribed areas of an air-bearing surface (ABS) of the head block to form a slider shape having a protruding part and a depressed part, the ABS and the side surface having a common edge such that the depressed part along the common edge extends into, but not beyond, the region.